Sputnik I

(noun)

The first artificial earth satellite. The Soviet Union launched it into an elliptical low Earth orbit on 4 October 1957. The surprise success precipitated the American Sputnik crisis, began the Space Age and triggered the Space Race, a part of the larger Cold War. The launch ushered in new political, military, technological, and scientific developments.

Related Terms

Examples of Sputnik I in the following topics:

  • Reactions to Sputnik

    • The Sputnik crisis is the name for the American reaction to the success of the Sputnik program.
    • However, the appearance of Sputnik I and the failure of the first two U.S. launch attempts rattled the American public.
    • Eisenhower called the shock the "Sputnik Crisis" because of the looming threat of the Soviet Union.
    • Sputnik spurred a series of U.S. initiatives, many initiated by the Department of Defense:
    • Sputnik I exhibit in the Missile & Space Gallery at the National Museum of the United States Air Force.

  • The Beats

    • The term Beatnik was coined to represent the Beat Generation, and referred to the name of the recent Russian satellite, Sputnik, and the Beat Generation.
    • Spiritual liberation, sexual revolution or liberation (i.e., gay liberation, which somewhat catalyzed women's liberation and black liberation);

  • Theatre and Novels

    • The term "Beatnik" was coined to represent the Beat Generation and was a play on words referring to both the name of the recent Russian satellite, Sputnik, and the Beat Generation.
    • Early works that focused on racial tolerance, though now recognized to have many problematic elements, included "Finian's Rainbow," "South Pacific," and "The King and I."

  • Technological Advancement

    • Emmy-winning comedy (1951–1960) I Love Lucy starred husband and wife Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball and enjoyed such popularity that some businesses closed early on Monday nights in order to allow employees to hurry home for the show.
    • The Soviet Union beat the US to this, with the October 4, 1957 orbiting of Sputnik 1, and later beat the US to the first human in space, Yuri Gagarin, on April 12, 1961.

  • Conclusion: Post-War America

    • The unexpected leapfrogging of American technology by the Soviets in 1957 with Sputnik, the first Earth satellite, began the Space Race, won by the Americans as Apollo 11 landed astronauts on the moon in 1969.
    • To facilitate the integration process, Congress passed the G.I.
    • The G.I.

  • The Eisenhower Administration

    • Americans were astonished when Soviets were the first to launch a satellite (Sputnik) into space on October 4, 1957.
    • Eisenhower came under heavy criticism after the Sputnik launch, and his administration responded to this crisis with many strategic initiatives, including the creation of NASA in 1958 and a speeding up of the American space program.

  • The Nuclear Arms Race

    • On October 4, 1957, the Soviet Union showed the world that they had missiles able to reach any part of the world when they launched the Sputnik satellite into Earth's orbit.

  • Modern Republicanism

    • When the Soviets launched Sputnik in 1957, he had to play catch-up in the space race.

  • The G.I. Bill of Rights

    • The G.I.
    • An important provision of the G.I.
    • Although the G.I.
    • Of the first 67,000 mortgages insured by the G.I.
    • The success of the 1944 G.I.

  • The Lost Generation

    • The Lost Generation was a group of writers and artists, including many expatriates, who helped define a larger, modernist movement after World War I.
    • In a more general sense the term identified the generation that came of age during and shortly after World War I, leading to the name, "the World War I Generation."
    • At the same time, Jazz and dancing rose in popularity, in opposition to the horrors of World War I.
    • American author Ernest Hemingway, pictured in his 1923 passport photo, coined the term "Lost Generation" to describe those who came of age around World War I.
    • Scott Fitgerald used to epitomize the Jazz era and the attitude of post-World War I America.